I posted this in the intrigue forum as well, sooo if you have read it there, then just ignore this!

Hello, new poster, 5+ year owner. I have a 2000 Olds intrigue GLS with the 3.5l and automatic climate control and approximately 110,000 miles. I have been having issues with AC since last summer, but it wasn't quite as bad. It use to be that I could just turn it off for a few and turn it back on and it would be alright. Anyways my AC only works intermittently and for brief periods of time. Usually it works when I first start the car and it will blow ice cold, then after a few minutes, it will stop. I have tried recharging it on a few occasions with a can of ~12 to 24 oz of r-134 (a few times last summer and once today), but it doesn't seem to help, it still cuts off after a few minutes. The can does get cold, so I can tell it is "sucking" in the the coolant. When I recharge the system, I have to wait until a period when the AC is working and the compressor clutch kicks in so it will "suck" the coolant out of the can because I don't know where to jump the compressor at and I don't see any wires/plugs on the "aluminum can" thing (accumulator as I recall) that you usually would use to as a jumper manually start the compressor, being blocked by the airbox also makes it difficult to see. I am pretty much at a loss of what to do and I really would like my AC to work, I cannot afford a new car right now, and I am not in the position to spend 500 to 1500 dollars to fix a luxury on a ten year old car with 100k+ miles that may or may not work after the repairs. Could I possibly have a faulty low pressure safety switch that could be preventing the compressor to run? If so where is it at? When I recharged my system, my gauge said it was approximately at 35 pounds (I believe 25 to 45 is "safe") when the compressor was running, it shoots up higher when compressor is not running. Any ideas would be GREATLY appreciated, thanks!

Also, when the AC stops working, the air it blows is usually HOT (AC is set at 60 degrees) and it smells a little funny, may not be anything, but IDK so I included it.
J

 

Is it the blower wheel making noise or outside condenser any way theres a legend on the door to tell you by the blinks of led light sounds like you have a blower motor going or splines on squirrel cage you have to call a tech.

 

Thanks for getting back to me. I just took out the relay and ran a wire from one lead to the other (37 and 80 as I recall) with a thermostat switch on the accumulator and a toggle switch inside the car so i can turn the compressor on manually. It works well. If you are interested, youtube "fix your ac cheaply", its by Scotty Kilmer, he also has a website (scottykilmer.com) and it shows pretty much exactly what I did.